


The CR Doesn't Discriminate

by demistarry



Category: Kamen Rider Ex-Aid
Genre: M/M, being outed, meant to be a little shippy but it's not overtly so, slightly angsty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-01
Updated: 2017-08-01
Packaged: 2018-12-09 15:58:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,052
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11672376
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/demistarry/pseuds/demistarry
Summary: After a chance encounter with Emu in the halls of the hospital, Hiiro is desperate to know more about this fluffy-haired intern.  But when his search for information breaches Emu's privacy, it's Hiiro's job to make amends.





	The CR Doesn't Discriminate

Hiiro collided into a familiar figure as he was making his way down the hall.

“Watch where you’re going,” he snapped automatically.

“Oh, sorry Hiiro!”

Hiiro was surprised when he realized that the person he walked into was none other than Houjou Emu, in his usual brightly-colored clothes and messy hair.  Normally Emu wasn’t in this part of the hospital--he was a pediatrics person, what was he doing so far from that ward?  Hiiro straightened out his clothes, clearing his throat.

“What are you doing here?” Hiiro asked sternly, ready to give the intern a serious talking-to for slacking off of on the job.  “Shouldn’t you be in the CR?”

“A-ah, not right now,” Emu chuckled, running a hand back through his hair.  “I was actually just... well... I was spending a little free time with some friends.”

While Hiiro didn’t doubt that Emu was sociable, for whatever reason the word “friends” seemed dubious here.  Hiiro put one hand on his hip and pursed his lips.  “Why don’t you tell me what you were _really_ doing, intern?”

Emu’s cheeks turned bright red, and he let out an awkward laugh.

“Sorry, it was--it’s a support group,” he admitted sheepishly.

 _Support group?  Ridiculous._  Those were Hiiro’s first thoughts when Emu spoke, but he forced himself to set aside the judgemental comments.  “Oh, a support group,” Hiiro said with a small nod.  “For what?”

“For, um...”  Emu looked away from Hiiro’s eyes, scratching his arm.  “It’s a little personal, Hiiro, no offense.”

A spark of annoyance flared in the surgeon’s chest--but he had to remember, he wasn’t entitled to anything from the intern unless it pertained to a case.  And since this seemed to be the intern’s private business...

“Well, just watch where you’re going in the future,” Hiiro said.  “Had you walked into someone more important than I am, perhaps you’d be suffering the consequences.”

“Y-yes, of course, Hiiro.”  Emu looked bashful, like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar.  “I’ll let you be going, then.”  He quickly bowed to Hiiro before scurrying off.

Hiiro watched as the intern’s form retreated, then crossed his arms.  He didn’t like being lied to, or having secrets kept from him.  Sure, Emu was doing... whatever he was doing... on his own private time, but he was just the tiniest bit stung from not being told.

Even as he continued on to his patient consult pre-operation, it still sat in the back of his mind.  What was Emu up to?  That man was such an open book that to hear anything was too personal to tell him was beyond surprising.   _Someone_ had to know.  And it wasn’t like Emu could be doing anything that reprehensible.

Could he...?

*

An average afternoon in the Cyber Rescue Unit.  Usually Hiiro liked to hang around here best when he had nothing else to do--it was quieter and more private than the staff lounge, where he was frequently accosted with questions and attempts at socialization from other staff and doctors.  Just because he carried a _reputation_ didn’t mean he wanted attention from it all the time.

The noise of Poppy bouncing around inside DoReMiFa Beat was not preferred, but it was tolerable.  Thus, Hiiro found himself sitting in the room with Poppy as he prepared to cut into a delicious panna cotta with a strawberry sauce.  Poppy poked her head out of the DoReMiFa Beat station to gaze at his dessert.

“What’ve you got today, Hiiiiiiiro~?” Poppy trilled.

“Something different,” he said.  “Father insisted upon it.”  He made a perfect incision into the dessert, cutting a slice of the gelatinous item perfectly onto his fork.

“It looks good!” she gasped.  “I wish the Director brought _me_ sweets.  But he only ever brings them to you!  Not even Emu gets any!”  Poppy’s face was overcome with a dejected expression.

“Can’t you get your own sweets?” Hiiro said, before he took a bite.

“Well, yesssss, but it’s not the same!  I mean, sometimes Emu and I go to lunch together and talk, but neither of us has money for dessert!”

Hiiro frowned thoughtfully as he cut another bite of the panna cotta.  “You and Emu go out together?”  He was beginning to realize that he knew very little about the intern.

“Oh yes,” Poppy said, clapping her hands together.  She popped out of the game console and bounced into the seat across from him, leaning her chin in her palms.  “If we’re lucky, maybe once a week!  It’s a lot of fun, Emu’s a great guy!”

The surgeon realized, with a little bit of shock, that he had never considered much about Emu outside work and his fondness for video games.  After all, he surely _had_ friends and family and interests outside of what he knew--but he had never really made an effort to find out what they were.  Knowing this now filled him with a feeling that he couldn’t quite describe... worry?  Sadness?  Both?

“He’s... a promising doctor,” Hiiro said hesitantly.  However, now that these thoughts weighed on his mind, the dessert in front of his was less pressing.  He looked up at Poppy, lips twisting up.  “Can I ask you a question, Poppy Pipopapo?”

“Sure thing, Hiiro!” Poppy said.  “About what?”

“About...”  He gave pause before he said, “About the intern.”

“Well, what do you want to know?”

That was a very good counter-question.  What _did_ he want to know?  Hiiro had no idea just how close of friends Poppy and Emu were, so there was a distinct possibility that any question he asked could be met with no answer.  But he had to try.

“Do you know,” Hiiro started slowly, “what Emu’s usually up to on Thursday mornings, here at the hospital?”

“Here at the hospital?”  Poppy tapped her chin.  “Well, if he’s not on call, I think he said he leads a children’s group!”

 _A children’s group... of course._  That made a lot of sense, for how much Emu loved kids and tended to get close to his patients.  “What kind of children’s group?”

“I think he said it was for teenagers,” Poppy said.  “You know, 12 to 19!  He talks about it really fondly, says the kids are great.”

That sounded a little over Emu’s usual age range, but this was more information than he had before.  “Do you know what they do?”

“Emu usually doesn’t talk about it much, but he says that a lot of the kids come out really happy!”  Poppy hummed thoughtfully.  “I think it’s a discussion group of some sort--sometimes he brings in a movie or books for them!”

“Hmm... thank you, Poppy.”  Armed with this knowledge, Hiiro could formulate a plan to learn about Emu.

But first, his dessert.

*

It was hard to alter his schedule, but Hiiro managed to hollow out a block of a few hours on a Thursday morning.  He had a coffee and a muffin to munch on as he waited in the nearby lounge for Emu to pass by, hopefully without noticing him.

Around 11am, he saw Emu sweep past in a flurry of labcoat tails and bright colors with a bookbag in hand.  Hiiro waited a few moments, then followed behind him.  It looked like the intern was late getting there, as he had rarely seen the man move so fast without a medical emergency taking place.

Emu quickly ducked inside a door, and the lock clicked shut conspicuously.  Hiiro slowly walked up to the door, back against the wall, then ducked his head around the corner to glance in the window.

Some fifteen kids of various teenage years sat in a circle in the middle of the room, with Emu standing in the middle--luckily his back was to the door.  He was gesticulating wildly with his hands, and all the kids sitting around seemed to be delighted by whatever he was saying to them.

Not wanting to risk detection, Hiiro pulled back from glancing in the window and took a few sips of his coffee again.  Who knows if those kids would spot him or not?  And if he got spotted, he was pretty sure that Emu wouldn’t appreciate knowing he had spied on him to find out what he was doing.

A doctor passing by happened to notice him.  “Are you going in?” he asked.

Hiiro shook his head.  “No, I just--I was asked to accompany Dr. Houjou here.”

“Aww, that’s sweet.  He’s doing good work with those kids.  But, I didn’t realize that you’re...”

“That I’m what?” Hiiro asked, a terse tone creeping into his voice.

“You know... living that sort of lifestyle.”  The doctor in front of him looked extremely uncomfortable now, looking away from him and beginning to move away from Hiiro.  However, Hiiro wasn’t about to let that happen--he grabbed the scruff of the doctor’s coat and pulled him in, keeping him from walking away.

“And just what _lifestyle_ would you be referring to?” he said, his voice dark and angry now.

The doctor raised his hands now, begging deference.  “I-I didn’t mean any offense!”

“Tell me what _lifestyle_ you’re talking about, or I’ll make sure to report you to every hospital superior from here to Hokkaido...!”  Hiiro’s heart was pounding now, though his voice was still as controlled as he could manage.

“T-the, the homosexual lifestyle!” the doctor stammered out.  “You know what I mean!”

Hiiro released the doctor’s coat, shoving him away.  “You had better have some better evidence to back up such assertions the next time you go around claiming someone’s ‘a homosexual,’ doctor, and making it sound like... like some sort of ‘alternative lifestyle.’  Get out of my sight.”

As if he feared for his life, the doctor ran away out of sight.  Hiiro leaned back against the wall, taking a deep breath to steady his heart.  He certainly didn’t need the coffee _now_ \--that was more than enough of a rush for him to feel hopped up.

 _Why would he think I’m gay?_ Hiiro thought to himself.   _Because I’m here with Emu, he would think I’m... gay..._

This was enough to think about for now.  Clouded by his own thoughts, Hiiro stormed off towards the CR.  He needed some time on his own.

*

The next time Hiiro saw Emu, they were alone in the Cyber Rescue Unit.

Emu, always breathless with joy or haste when he arrived to the CR, flopped down in a chair before even greeting Hiiro.  Hiiro was waiting for him, though, and was unsurprised when he came in.  There was a piece of chocolate cake sitting in front of his bridged fingers, but it lay untouched.

“Hey there Hiiro,” Emu finally sighed, grinning at him tiredly.

“Hello, intern,” Hiiro nodded.

Emu wiped a bit of sweat off his brow, then grabbed a water bottle from the center of the table.  Popping open the cap and swallowing a few mouthfuls, he began to perk up like a parched houseplant.  Hiiro wasn’t sure how to approach Emu about what he wanted to know, but Emu was a little more perceptive; the intern cast a curious eye to Hiiro after a few moments of the surgeon’s staring.

“Is something wrong, Hiiro?” he asked, setting the bottle down on the table.

Hiiro slowly shook his head.  “No, I...”  That indescribable feeling washed over him again, and his heart beat a little harder in his chest.  “I think I’ve acted inappropriately, intern.”

“Oh?”  Emu scratched his head.  “How is that?”

“I--I asked about your group.  With the children.”  Hiro bit his lip momentarily, drew a sigh, and continued.  “I should have been direct with you, but I wasn’t.”

There was a moment where Emu seemed to be caught between emotions--where his confused smile was fading into one of horror.  Hiiro felt his heart ache as Emu stumbled over his own lips, trying to get something coherent out.  Finally, Emu leaned back in the chair, running a hand through his hair.

“And what d-did you find out, then?” Emu asked.  “I-I hope that you... ugh...”

Hiiro’s frown grew.  With a breath to settle his heart, he tried to come up with something gentle to say.  What he _did_ say was far from gentle.

“Are you gay, intern?”

Emu’s expression blanched, and he put his hands over his face.  “Oh my god!” he gasped.

“It’s okay if you--” Hiiro started, but Emu cut him off.

“I didn’t want anyone here to know!”  Emu’s fingers curled against his forehead.  “I-I--I talked to Poppy about it a little bit, but only b-because she couldn’t get me fired!”  He pulled his hands down his face, shoulders shaking slightly.  “I love this h-hospital, Hiiro, I don’t want to lose my job--the kids need me, some of them never smiled before the discussion group, but--please, don’t tell anyone, please...”

 _He’s panicking,_ Hiiro thought.  It took him a moment to understand, but seeing as the man looked to be on the brink of tears--well, it couldn’t have been more obvious if it had slapped him in the face (which he may or may not have deserved at this point).  He didn’t have the heart to tell Emu just where he had gotten his information, but he couldn’t just let the man have a breakdown across from him.  Hiiro stood from his chair, and moved to sit in the chair nearer to Emu’s.  Emu instinctively recoiled from him, but he still put a hand on Emu’s shoulder.

“You’re not going to lose your job, intern,” Hiiro said steadily.  “Just because you’re--being gay isn’t cause for dismissal from your post.”

“That’s not true,” Emu said between quivering gasps.  “M-maybe when you were in the United States t-that would be true, but here in Japan--!”  He furiously rubbed at his eyes with the back of his hands, like a child.  “If the Director f-found out... I could b-be fired outright!  No j-justification!”

“Shhh,” Hiiro hummed, “I promise it won’t end badly.”

“How do you know t-that?!”

Hiiro pursed his lips.  “Intern, you’re hysterical right now,” he said.  “Please, take a few breaths to compose yourself.”

Emu lowered his hands, and now tears brimmed over his eyes.  “Do you know what it’s like t-to be outed for something so personal, Hiiro?”  Rubbing at his cheeks, he continued: “To have people look at y-you differently for something you can’t control?  It’s t-the worst feeling.”

“I’ve... I’ve never been outed,” Hiiro said slowly, “but... I think I understand what that might be like.  Intern, I’m--I’m sorry.”  He squeezed Emu’s shoulder and the other man curled in a little bit.  “But I can tell you for certain that my father would never fire you from the CR.”

The intern couldn’t stem the flow of tears now, though his voice grew very quiet.  “I was b-banned from a few stores on campus during my education,” he whispered, “a-and I nearly g-got kicked from several classes because of rumors about me.  Perhaps I shouldn’t have... wanted to make those kids smile... but I r-remember how I felt the very f-first time I played a video game with a character who was like me, a-and... I w-wanted to give that to them, Hiiro!”

Despite Hiiro’s disdain of video games, Emu’s story touched his heart.  Anyone who was so passionate had a power that couldn’t be denied.  If only Emu knew...

“That’s okay,” Hiiro said.  “My father would have to remove me from the CR before he removed you.  You have my word.”

This seemed to calm Emu a little bit.  He sniffed hard, then looked at Hiiro cautiously.  “Do you promise t-that... that you don’t like me less?  Knowing that I’m... gay?”

The surgeon managed a small smile for Emu.  “Of course not.”

And now, a sad smile on Emu’s face.  While he obviously wasn’t 100% better, he looked brighter than at the start of this conversation.  “Thank you, Hiiro.  I... I’m glad that you know.  I wish I could have told you myself, but... I’m s-still glad.”

 _I’m glad that I know more about you,_ Hiiro thought as he patted Emu’s shoulder.   _Now I need to make this all up to you._

*

The next time Hiiro had his schedule cleared, he had a box of donuts on a Thursday morning.

Things between himself and Emu had been... different, to say the least.  While they maintained professionality in the Cyber Rescue Unit and during surgeries, Emu had been even more friendly than he usually was.  Perhaps he felt a kinship with Hiiro, now that Hiiro knew his... secret.  Hiiro felt dirty calling it a secret though--and perhaps, just a little hypocritical.

He knocked on the door to the room, and watched as all the occupants inside the room turned to look at him through the window.  Emu was in the middle of the room once again, and turned slowly to look in the window.  The intern’s face lit up like a lightbulb upon seeing him at the door, and he scrambled to open the handle.

“Hiiro!” he gasped.  “What are you doing here?”

Hiiro cleared his throat, shifting the box of donuts in his hand.  “I was wondering if this session was open to visitors.”

Emu batted his eyelashes, overcome for a moment.  “I-I--we’ve never had visitors.”

“I just thought that... perhaps they would enjoy some donuts and the company of another doctor like yourself.”

The intern cocked his head.  “You’re...?  But what about... before CR?”

The reminder of his old girlfriend soured the moment a little, but Hiiro forced himself not to change expression.  “My relationship before I joined this department does not reflect on... the extent of my potential.”

Emu chuckled.  “You could just say that you’re bi, Hiiro.”

“Will you let me in with these donuts, or not?” Hiiro snapped.  Emu didn’t seem to take it hard, though, laughing happily as he lifted the box from Hiiro’s hands.

“Please--we’ll be happy to have someone new.”

As Hiiro stepped into the room full of teenagers, he couldn’t help but feel... that he had really done something good today.  Emu would be happy, the kids would be happy, and maybe this would be enough repayment for the unsavory incident a few days ago.

Besides, it was nice to be _out and about._

**Author's Note:**

> Thought I'd try something from Hiiro's perspective! My girlfriend gave me a little input by suggesting I write the slightly self-inserty thing (by making Hiiro bi), so I hope that it doesn't drag on too hard with the details and Emu's worries about being fired.
> 
> To my knowledge, Tokyo has restrictions on discrimination based on sexual orientation--but not the rest of the country. Does Ex-Aid take place in Tokyo? I honestly couldn't tell from the bit of research I did to find out.
> 
> Also, I didn't realize until just now how gossipy I've made Poppy. Promise to do something with her in a better light sometime soon!


End file.
